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Idioms or Adages should be used cautiously

Idioms and adages make your speech and essay more interesting, no doubt, but they should be used cautiously because idioms and adages that fail to convey your thoughts or ideas can lead to disastrous results.

Idioms and adages have hidden meanings, which you should understand before using them in essays and articles. Using an incorrect idiom or adage can convey the wrong meaning, which can be detrimental to your grade.

Also, if you use incorrect idioms and adages in your speech and writing, you automatically convey to the reader that your language skills are poor.

Some people have the misconception that the more idioms or adages they use in their essays, the more sophisticated the essay will sound. This is not true. In fact, if you use too many idioms and adages or incorrect idioms and adages, you will confuse the reader and his interest in your essay will deteriorate.

Also, idioms, proverbs and adages should be used to elaborate a thought or an idea, instead of complicating them. The usage of idioms and adages is a test of simplicity and genuineness. An essay is not a test of how many idioms you know, but it is a test of how well you can convey your idea. Also, you should take into consideration the context of your speech or writing before using idioms and adages.

For example, if you are writing a formal letter to an organisation, it is best not to use idioms because your aim is to convey certain information quickly, in the least number of words. On the other hand, if you are writing an essay or a short story, you can use idioms to make your writing interesting.

One should be sure of the source of adages before using them. Often, when using adages in articles, you are required to mention the person who came up with the adage for credibility. So, unless you are certain as to who came up with the adage, you should not use it.